a film by joshua bee alafia

His friends think Parker is crazy for believing that Al Green's new album will bring fractured families back together upon it's release. He makes a documentary about the difficulty African American families face in staying together and we see several couples navigate pregnancy, commitment, communication and fatherhood. Will Al Green's music prove to enchant, awaken and inspire the streets of Brooklyn... and the world?

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Let's Stay Together Featured as one of Rolling Out's Great Black Independent Films of 2012

It's always a good feeling when "Let's Stay Together," seems to enter the collective subconscious and comes out in strange moments in pop culture.  On October 7, 2010, NBC's poplular comedy 30 Rock, titled episode 503, "Let's Stay Together," named after an idea that the character "Dot Com" (Kevin Brown) says,"Well, here's something I've been working on. It's called Let's Stay Together, after the Al Green song. It focuses on an African American family in Detroit in the seventies. Motown, the auto industry, Vietnam, Watergate. Let's Stay Together's not just about family trying to stay together, but also a nation." Did 30 Rock writer, Jack Burditt, know about the film "Let's Stay Together?"  I have no idea.  In 2011, Jacque Edmonds began airing his sitcom for BET called "Let's Stay Together," and friends asked me if I thought I should change my film's title.  I said I would if the show were good.  Though the BET show has aired another season, I'm staying with the title. 
Then there was the great moment on January 19, 2012  when President Obama showed his singing chops singing, Al Green's classic at the Apollo Theatre:
And yesterday "Let's Stay Together" was sited in Rollingout.com as one of the Great Black Independent Films of 2012. Big thanks to Ruthie Hawkins and all the folks at Rolling Out! http://rollingout.com/entertainment/great-black-independent-films-of-2012/7/

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